10 April 2019 – San Francisco, CA: Except for the stars on screen, attire for everyone else is eco-friendly casual. Of course, the penguins will be in nature’s tuxedos. On Thursday, April 11 at 7pm, San Francisco’sInternational Ocean Film Festival(www.intloceanfilmfest.org) will host anexclusive opening-week screening of the latest Disneynature feature film“Penguins” at San Francisco’s Century Westfield Theater (835 Market Street / Powell Street Muni/BART). The screening will be followed by a Q&Asession with Paul Baribault, Vice President of Disneynature, and “Penguins” producer Roy Conli, who produced the Oscar®-winning film “Big Hero 6.” The film opens in theaters nationwide on Wednesday, April 17 in recognition of Earth Day.

“It’s a distinct pleasure to work with our friends and colleagues at Disneynature,” said Ana Blanco, Executive Director for the International Ocean Film Festival. “Films such as ‘Penguins’, which portray wildlife as relatable and even personable, foster a love for wildlife among moviegoers of all ages. Penguins protagonist Steve gives an endearing voice to nature, and as a loveable ambassador helps reinforce our own mission of inspiring audiences and ‘saving the world’s oceans: one film at a time.’ We’re thrilled to celebrate Earth Day with his eventful story, and have a conversation with the team that brought Steve’s epic journey to the silver screen.”

“Penguins” is a coming-of-age story about an Adélie penguin named Steve who joins millions of fellow males in the icy Antarctic spring on a quest to build a suitable nest, find a life partner and start a family. None of it comes easily for him, especially considering he’s targeted by everything from killer whales to leopard seals, who unapologetically threaten his happily ever after. “Penguins,” directed by Alastair Fothergill and Jeff Wilson, is from the filmmaking team behind “Bears,” “Chimpanzee” and “Monkey Kingdom.”

Since its launch in 2004, the San Francisco-based International Ocean Film Festival has attracted thousands of spectators of all ages from around the world, including film enthusiasts, sea athletes, educators, and environmental supporters. Since then, the Festival has presented on average over 50 films annually from 15 different countries and featured post-film Q&A sessions with visiting filmmakers, special panel discussions with content experts, and the Annual Free Student Education Program. It was the first event of its kind in North America, inspired by the well-established ocean festival in Toulon, France, Festival International du Film Maritime, which has continued to draw large audiences for more than 40 years. The International Ocean Film Festival is a registered 501(c) 3 non-profit.

ABOUT DISNEYNATURE

Celebrating 10 years since its first U.S. theatrical feature, “Earth,” Disneynature brings the world’s top nature filmmakers together to share a wide variety of wildlife stories on the big screen in order to engage, inspire and educate theatrical audiences everywhere. Walt Disney was a pioneer in wildlife filmmaking, producing 13 True-Life Adventure motion pictures between 1948 and 1960, which earned eight Academy Awards®. All seven of Disneynature’s theatrical film releases—”Earth,” “Oceans,” “African Cats,” “Chimpanzee,” “Bears,” “Monkey Kingdom” and “Born in China”—rank among the top 10 highest overall grossing feature-length nature films to date, with “Chimpanzee” garnering a record-breaking opening weekend for the genre. “Penguins,” opening April 17, 2019, is the label’s 8th theatrical release. Disneynature’s commitment to conservation is a key pillar of the label and the films empower the audience to help make a difference. Through donations tied to opening-week attendance of its films, Disneynature has contributed to a host of conservation initiatives. “Penguins” continues Disneynature’s conservation tradition: for every ticket sold opening week (April 17-23, 2019), Disneynature will make a donation to the Wildlife Conservation Network (WCN) to help protect penguins across the southern hemisphere. For more information about Disneynature, like us on Facebook: facebook.com/Disneynature and follow us on Twitter: twitter.com/Disneynature.